John Dizikes, Professor Emeritus of
American Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz, wrote a
book, Sportsmen and Gamesmen, published in 1981 in which he examined,
within a loosely interpretive concept of "games & sports," individuals,
particularly from 19th century America, who somehow transcended the paradigms of
the times and changed forever our understanding and appreciation for our
pastimes. One of these great individuals that Dizikes examined was Paul
Morphy. Despite his meticulous research, Dizikes made some errors - most
of which can be attributed to his seemingly and almost inexplicable unawareness
of Lawson's 1976 seminal work, Paul Morphy: the Pride and Sorrow of Chess.
However, his ideas on Morphy, as well as his understanding of the world in which
Morphy lived is rock solid, innovative and compelling.

Since Dizikes didn't consult Lawson,
what books did he use in his research? He explains this very neatly, and by
virtue of not having read Lawson, comes to the interesting conclusions below:

First, concerning Fiske's book:

"There are two indispensable
sources dealing with the file and chess career of Paul Morphy. One is Daniel
Willard Fiske's The Book of the First American Chess Congress .... The
title is misleading. Although it is primarily about the Chess Congress of 1857
and was written to commemorate that event, it actually includes a great deal of
very valuable material, which is to be found nowhere else, about the history of
chess in the United States. In fact, so extensive did Fiske’s researches become
that the book grew to twice the size initially intended and was not completed
until two years after the congress. As a result, the book’s compilers were able
to include an account of Morphy’s trip to Europe. Fiske took pains to be
accurate, giving Morphy the final version of the material for his approval."

Second, concerning Edge's book:

"The second important source is
Frederick Milns Edge's The Exploits and Triumphs, in Europe, of Paul Morphy... Edge’s book is lively and, while wholly admiring, does not go in for
exaggeration, on the sensible principle that the unvarnished truth about Paul
Morphs was remarkable enough. Its chief limitation is one of scope; it is almost
entirely about events in Europe and concludes with Morphy’s return to the United
States, which coincided with the publication of the book."

Third, concerning Buck's booklet:

"There are three books that deal
primarily with Morphy’s personal life, especially the years after his chess
triumphs. All are difficult to get hold of. The most dependable and least
eccentric in tone is a small volume by C. A. Buck, entitled Paul Morphy: His
Later Life (Newport, Ky., 1902). Buck was an admirer who devoted himself to
gathering information about Morphy. Buck’s publisher said that much of that
information came from “authentic sources” in New Orleans, with “Morphy”s
relatives and friends giving him great assistance.” The accuracy of this claim
is difficult to estimate, but Buck’s views are sober and sensible."

He's less concerned with the family-centric booklets:

"The other two books are more
problematic. Louis Albert Morphy's, Poems and Prose Sketches, with a
Biographical Memoir (New Orleans, 1921) was privately published. The author
was a great-nephew, and his book is both odd and interesting, devoting most of
its attention to Morphy's illness and last years, and seeking to understand
Morphy's life by means of some kind of doctrine of philosophical inevitability.
Though pretentious and sometimes unintelligible, there are bits of information
in it that appear nowhere else.

Regina Morphy-Voitier, Life of Paul Morphy in the Vieux Carré of New Orleans
and Abroad (New Orleans, 1926) is perfectly intelligible but unrelentingly
snobbish in its main purpose. which was to establish the superiority of the
Morphy family's social position. But it is of special value, for Mrs.
Morphy-Voitier, a great-niece, quotes family letters and stories. It may well be
that it was written as a sort of reply to Louis Albert’s earlier account, an
effort to set the record straight in a respectable fashion. But that record,
like Morphy's life, is anything but straight."

As less yet with those he perceives as less biographical in
nature:

"There are a great number of’ books
of chess analysis that refer to Paul Morphy. Very few of these contain any
biographical material. J. J. Löwenthal's Morphy’s Games of Chess (London,
1860), the first book about his games, contained a preface of a few words by
Morphy himself. Philip Sergeant, the leading student of Morphy’s chess playing,
reedited this book in an expanded form as Morphy’s Games of Chess
(London, 1916); there is material of interest in this and in Sergeant’s
Morphy Gleanings."